The Minnesota Golden Gophers are having a season that hasn’t been experienced in nearly 80 years, getting off to an 8-0 start and carrying a 5-0 record in the Big Ten for the first time since 1961.
While the Gophers have generated enough buzz with their play on the field, head coach P.J. Fleck is determined to bring the party off of it.
After the Gophers’ 52-10 win over Maryland on Saturday afternoon, Fleck began an impromptu campaign to get ESPN’s College GameDay to come to Minnesota for their next game against No. 6 Penn State on Nov. 9. After pleading his case during a TV interview on the field, he reiterated his stance during his postgame press conference.
Here's part of @Coach_Fleck's energetic message to @CollegeGameDay.
After Fleck spoke at an ESPN event, @ReceDavis said the #Gophers would be on the map soon.
Well….now P.J. Fleck wants to see the entire crew in Minneapolis. pic.twitter.com/xe2ZGEiy4i
— Daniel House (@DanielHouseMN) October 26, 2019
In addition to Fleck’s remarks, the university has gotten involved, writing a cover letter to ESPN including Minnesota’s resume and previous accomplishments.
To Whom It May Concern pic.twitter.com/qNGRI6X9ZA
— Minnesota Football (@GopherFootball) October 27, 2019
With both Penn State and Minnesota, who entered this week ranked 17th in the AP poll, owning 8-0 records, the matchup is juicy enough for ESPN to bring their pregame show to Minnesota.
The show has never visited Minnesota since its debut in September of 1987, making it one of ten schools in the Power Five conferences to never host College GameDay, according to Rotoworld’s Thor Nystrom.
While the show might not draw in the four million fans that Fleck is promising, it would generate more buzz around the program which could help with recruiting.
It will be another couple weeks before fans will know if Lee Corso could be donning Goldy Gopher’s head as part of the show, but after Fleck’s comments, it appears the Gophers aren’t going to go down without a fight to bring GameDay to Minneapolis.
